liveforphysics
100 TW
I talked with a couple racing interested friends today for a bit on the topic of myself hosting a race event for powered bicycles. They had some good ideas to add to mine. Here is the basic concept I want to use, and I would like your input/interest.
#1. This will be the rule that harshly governs all aspects of the event. It is NOT FOR PROFIT! It is to be a pit that I throw cash into with no recovery effort/plan/etc. If you want to suggest a concept that makes it profitable, or even helps me recover costs, it will be rejected. This is to be 100% about racing and racing only.
#2. We set some standard that defines it as a power assist bicycle (be it gasoline or electric or whatever you want) and this is all that will govern what is allowed to enter. This means, you do every clever cheating bastard trick your deviant cheating mind can come up with that will shave any time off your time around the track, and do not have to fear not being allowed to enter and compete as long as it meets the standards rule set for calling it a power assist bicycle. The standard will be something very simple yet carefully worded, likely something along the lines of, working pedals (proven by riding the bike 1 lap around the track under pedals only in under 1min or whatever), only 2 wheels inline, not over 70lbs (-fuel weight for gassers, -battery weight for electrics).
#3. The race will be 100% free for everyone to enter who wants to enter. I pay the entire track expenses (track rental for $2,000 + insurance + medic etc)
#4. I provide a huge row of ice chest coolers jam packed with ice cold water bottles and juice etc.
#5. I rent a big ass generator (like 20kw) that sits in a dedicated charging location that will power some crude wooden 2x4 bike-rack style stands with an extension cord plug sitting at each point. Each little slot will have something like a pair of dedicated 30amp breaker outlets, so folks can charge up to 6kw if they have the chargers for it.
#6. I will also have a couple 5gal jugs of Q16 race fuel (or something they like better?) available for the gassers if they need race fuel.
#7. I will rent the track's kart transponders with the track rental, and we can double-sided tape stick them to the bikes as they go into a heat, and use the kart tracks timing equipment to get times.
#8. No classes to the races. A whole bunch of open practice session time where everyone gets to mount up a transponder for like 10 laps that they want timed after they get the track down and bikes dialed etc. Then the top 20 bikes the posted the top 20 fastest single laps get to enter the main event. Maybe to make it fun an enter in a possible sandbagging incentive/gamble, we grid the pack in reverse order of fastest laptimes.
This means, if you've got the fastest setup, you better also be damn good at making passes, cause you will need to make 19 of them to get into first.
#9. Something like the top 10 lowest lap time bikes get to go back on the track for a single warm-up lap as the lead-in flying start, then time the second lap for who can get the all-time fastest hotlap just for fun and bragging rights.
#10. Trophies but no prizes. Nobody serious races for a prize, and it kinda takes away from the effort.
#11. A possible side event of an energy limited class. I supply something like 4x 6x5Ah 45-90c nano-tech packs all sitting charged on a common bus so everyone knows they are all at the same charge level (maybe like 8-10sets of 4x 6s5ah packs for 8-10 people to enter?). They have some 8mm bullets on them, you connect them up however you want, 12s10Ah or 24s5Ah or whatever. Each racer gets the same exact battery capacity, capable of shelling out over 20kw bursts of power, but the race length will be something very long, like 20laps or something so they must carefully choose were they use the energy and focus on pedaling like crazy and carrying as much speed as possible out of corners etc. Possibly also have something like clear soda bottles with a cap that is drilled for a fuel line and vent tube and some carefully measured amount of race gas is put into each bottle, and I provide a roll of silicon fuel line hose so they just tape on the bottle and run the fuel line to the carb and the gasoline bikes can compete in an energy limited class with us.
#12. I supply some big ass chargers able to do 180 charge amps continuously (from 0v to 155v) so folks who might not have fast chargers but do have good LiPo can have 5-10min recharge times to get as many practice sessions on the track as possible.
#13. NO MONEY LEAVES RACERS POCKETS. Its a massive expense and effort (thousands of dollars) just to build and prep and get a bike to an event. Nobody needs to be nickel and dimeing the folks that a race awesome (the racers).
#14. An elaborate carpool/logistics structure setup with the event, so if folks from WA want to ride this event in the SF bay area (where it likely will be), they drive to Oregon somewhere where they meet up with another racer group who drive to Cali who meet with another racer group who drive to SF bay area etc. The goal being to spread the driving/fuel/logistics burden out between as many folks as possible, so if a guy from WA wants to enter, he only has to make the effort to get to OR and then has a free ride from there etc. Racers help racers, it's the only way racing works.
#15. I try to think of more things that will make it as easy as possible for the racers who make an effort to get here, and do them. Maybe a free bad-ass catered lunch/bbq? Maybe a portable welding/repair truck with a welder and air compressor and drill press and some tools etc? You guys have ideas?
#16. Amberwolf gets treated like a king, and is free to come with 2 broken legs, riding a lawnchair scotch-taped onto a shopping kart with a 8,000hp top-fuel dragster engine driving wheel-chair wheels. Nobody shows the spirit of racing more, and nobody sacrifices harder to make an event than Amberwolf. Huge respect to you bro! Nobodies bike will be prohibited, no matter how resource stretched the builder was at the time, it just has to meet the standards to qualify as a power assist bicycle and it's in.
What do you guys think? I don't make a lot of money anymore since quitting Microsoft and having child support payments to make, but I live like a homeless person to keep costs down, and what I do make I'm 100% down for helping racing an the electric revolution. I expect nothing back but some racers giving it everything they have. If you guys have ideas that don't increase costs by a massive amount, but DO increase the racing aspect, I will do my best to make them happen.
I also need to know a ball-park idea on the date to make it happen.
Help me out with ideas/suggestions, etc. What do you want to see in a race?
#1. This will be the rule that harshly governs all aspects of the event. It is NOT FOR PROFIT! It is to be a pit that I throw cash into with no recovery effort/plan/etc. If you want to suggest a concept that makes it profitable, or even helps me recover costs, it will be rejected. This is to be 100% about racing and racing only.
#2. We set some standard that defines it as a power assist bicycle (be it gasoline or electric or whatever you want) and this is all that will govern what is allowed to enter. This means, you do every clever cheating bastard trick your deviant cheating mind can come up with that will shave any time off your time around the track, and do not have to fear not being allowed to enter and compete as long as it meets the standards rule set for calling it a power assist bicycle. The standard will be something very simple yet carefully worded, likely something along the lines of, working pedals (proven by riding the bike 1 lap around the track under pedals only in under 1min or whatever), only 2 wheels inline, not over 70lbs (-fuel weight for gassers, -battery weight for electrics).
#3. The race will be 100% free for everyone to enter who wants to enter. I pay the entire track expenses (track rental for $2,000 + insurance + medic etc)
#4. I provide a huge row of ice chest coolers jam packed with ice cold water bottles and juice etc.
#5. I rent a big ass generator (like 20kw) that sits in a dedicated charging location that will power some crude wooden 2x4 bike-rack style stands with an extension cord plug sitting at each point. Each little slot will have something like a pair of dedicated 30amp breaker outlets, so folks can charge up to 6kw if they have the chargers for it.
#6. I will also have a couple 5gal jugs of Q16 race fuel (or something they like better?) available for the gassers if they need race fuel.
#7. I will rent the track's kart transponders with the track rental, and we can double-sided tape stick them to the bikes as they go into a heat, and use the kart tracks timing equipment to get times.
#8. No classes to the races. A whole bunch of open practice session time where everyone gets to mount up a transponder for like 10 laps that they want timed after they get the track down and bikes dialed etc. Then the top 20 bikes the posted the top 20 fastest single laps get to enter the main event. Maybe to make it fun an enter in a possible sandbagging incentive/gamble, we grid the pack in reverse order of fastest laptimes.
This means, if you've got the fastest setup, you better also be damn good at making passes, cause you will need to make 19 of them to get into first. #9. Something like the top 10 lowest lap time bikes get to go back on the track for a single warm-up lap as the lead-in flying start, then time the second lap for who can get the all-time fastest hotlap just for fun and bragging rights.
#10. Trophies but no prizes. Nobody serious races for a prize, and it kinda takes away from the effort.
#11. A possible side event of an energy limited class. I supply something like 4x 6x5Ah 45-90c nano-tech packs all sitting charged on a common bus so everyone knows they are all at the same charge level (maybe like 8-10sets of 4x 6s5ah packs for 8-10 people to enter?). They have some 8mm bullets on them, you connect them up however you want, 12s10Ah or 24s5Ah or whatever. Each racer gets the same exact battery capacity, capable of shelling out over 20kw bursts of power, but the race length will be something very long, like 20laps or something so they must carefully choose were they use the energy and focus on pedaling like crazy and carrying as much speed as possible out of corners etc. Possibly also have something like clear soda bottles with a cap that is drilled for a fuel line and vent tube and some carefully measured amount of race gas is put into each bottle, and I provide a roll of silicon fuel line hose so they just tape on the bottle and run the fuel line to the carb and the gasoline bikes can compete in an energy limited class with us.
#12. I supply some big ass chargers able to do 180 charge amps continuously (from 0v to 155v) so folks who might not have fast chargers but do have good LiPo can have 5-10min recharge times to get as many practice sessions on the track as possible.
#13. NO MONEY LEAVES RACERS POCKETS. Its a massive expense and effort (thousands of dollars) just to build and prep and get a bike to an event. Nobody needs to be nickel and dimeing the folks that a race awesome (the racers).
#14. An elaborate carpool/logistics structure setup with the event, so if folks from WA want to ride this event in the SF bay area (where it likely will be), they drive to Oregon somewhere where they meet up with another racer group who drive to Cali who meet with another racer group who drive to SF bay area etc. The goal being to spread the driving/fuel/logistics burden out between as many folks as possible, so if a guy from WA wants to enter, he only has to make the effort to get to OR and then has a free ride from there etc. Racers help racers, it's the only way racing works.
#15. I try to think of more things that will make it as easy as possible for the racers who make an effort to get here, and do them. Maybe a free bad-ass catered lunch/bbq? Maybe a portable welding/repair truck with a welder and air compressor and drill press and some tools etc? You guys have ideas?
#16. Amberwolf gets treated like a king, and is free to come with 2 broken legs, riding a lawnchair scotch-taped onto a shopping kart with a 8,000hp top-fuel dragster engine driving wheel-chair wheels. Nobody shows the spirit of racing more, and nobody sacrifices harder to make an event than Amberwolf. Huge respect to you bro! Nobodies bike will be prohibited, no matter how resource stretched the builder was at the time, it just has to meet the standards to qualify as a power assist bicycle and it's in.
What do you guys think? I don't make a lot of money anymore since quitting Microsoft and having child support payments to make, but I live like a homeless person to keep costs down, and what I do make I'm 100% down for helping racing an the electric revolution. I expect nothing back but some racers giving it everything they have. If you guys have ideas that don't increase costs by a massive amount, but DO increase the racing aspect, I will do my best to make them happen.
I also need to know a ball-park idea on the date to make it happen.
Help me out with ideas/suggestions, etc. What do you want to see in a race?
